A conventional handgun which operates on the Browning short recoil principle suffers from the disadvantage that its barrel is supported by a barrel bushing which in turn is supported by a slide which in turn is carried on a frame. There is inevitably some play between the frame and the slide and between the barrel and the barrel bushing. Such play can give rise to inaccuracy during firing. The barrel bushing also adds to the mass of the slide and as it moves with the slide during firing, its additional mass can contribute to failure of the handgun. It is an object of this invention to offer a solution to this problem.